MIT Researchers 3D Print Walking Robot

By
PC Mag ME TeamApril 10, 2016, 1 p.m.

MIT researchers describe how to 3D print "dynamic robots in a single step, with no assembly required."

Here's an obvious statement: Making a robot that can walk isn't easy, or quick. But the smart people at Massachusetts Institute of Technology are looking to simplify the process with the help of 3D printers.

Researchers at the school's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory just came out with a paper describing how to 3D print "dynamic robots in a single step, with no assembly required," using commercially available tools, according to a news release. This new process involves printing both sold and liquid materials at the same time.

"Our approach, which we call 'printable hydraulics,' is a step towards the rapid fabrication of functional machines," CSAIL Director Daniela Rus, who oversaw the project and co-wrote the paper, said in a statement. "All you have to do is stick in a battery and motor, and you have a robot that can practically walk right out of the printer."

To demonstrate their method, the team 3D printed "a tiny six-legged robot that can crawl via 12 hydraulic pumps embedded within its body," the school said. The robot weighs just 1.5 pounds and measures less than 6 inches long. It sports a tiny motor that spins a crankshaft that pumps fluid into the robot's legs, helping it move. Every component on the little robot — aside from its motor and power supply — was 3D printed in one step.

Related Articles

"The CSAIL team has taken multi-material printing to the next level by printing not just a combination of different polymers or a mixture of metals, but essentially a self-contained working hydraulic system," Hod Lipson, Columbia University engineering professor and co-author of Fabricated: The New World of 3-D Printing, said in a statement. "It's an important step towards the next big phase of 3D printing — moving from printing passive parts to printing active integrated systems."

For more on the new technique, check out the video below.

Meanwhile across the pond, data scientists have leveraged 3D printing to produce a new work of art that looks remarkably similar to the works of Rembrandt. Unveiled this week in Amsterdam, "the Next Rembrandt" is made up of more than 148 million pixels and "is based on 168,263 Rembrandt painting fragments," according to a report from The Guardian.